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Pilgrimage to see Pope Francis unforgettable for local group

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The group traveling to the East Coast to see Pope Francis included 15 students and three adults from Holy Family Parish, as well as two residents from Eastman, two from Bloomington and 20 from Boscobel. (Submitted photo)

By Correne Martin

When Pope Francis made his historic visit to the United States two weeks ago, a group from Holy Family Parish in Prairie du Chien made the trip to the East Coast to experience the once-in-a-lifetime spectacle surrounding the visit and to catch a glimpse of the pope himself.

Fifteen students and three adults from Holy Family Parish, as well as two residents from Eastman, two from Bloomington and 20 from Boscobel, boarded Minnesota Coaches Thursday, Sept. 24, at 9 p.m., for a four-day excursion.

The two buses from southwest Wisconsin arrived at Camp Greenlane in Philadelphia on Sept. 25 at about 5:30 p.m. There, they ate and settled in before Saturday’s big event, the Festival of the Families—an international celebration of family, community, and faith during which performers entertain and educate participants from around the world. The Holy Father celebrated with the various cultures, both by enjoying the show and also listening to six families from different continents describe their joys and challenges.

“We were on a six-lane freeway they closed down for the pope’s visit,” stated Mary Stoeffler, one of the adult chaperones who made the trip from Prairie du Chien. The other two were Mark Grunwald and Jean Ann Dillman. “The closest we could get [to the festivities] was four miles out. We walked all that way to see everything, and everybody had to go through security.”

Morgan Rittrig, a junior from Prairie du Chien, said the security was extremely tight, noting that many of her friends had valuable water bottles confiscated and not returned.

Saturday involved a lot of standing around for the local tourists. They left their campground around 7 a.m. and experienced the subway system (many for the first time) en route to the festival happenings. While waiting to partake, the students snapped tons of pictures and took note of the attractions not typically seen in small-town Wisconsin. They readily embraced the many eclectic shops, high-rise buildings, jumbotrons, cheesesteak food stands, street performers and even the protestors, beggars, security guards and enormous, anxious crowd.

“It was very cool to see the different cultures (and religions) of people, all there to see the pope,” said Taylor Hendrickson, a fellow junior student. “To see everyone stop fighting and accept other cultures for one moment, just to see this one guy, it was amazing!”

It wasn’t until after 7 p.m. Saturday that the group finally got to see Pope Francis, passing by in his Popemobile, for what was a very brief period.

“When we saw him, everyone was pushing, shoving and  very violent,” Rittrig said.

“People were screaming and yelling,” added Emily Steger, a fellow junior classmate.

“When we saw him, it was very quick because there was a security problem at that time,” Stoeffler said.

That night, the group returned to their campground around 11 p.m.

Though Saturday was a monumental one, Sunday, Sept. 27 was even more memorable for the travelers. They started off the day at St. John the Evangelist Church in Philadelphia, where six priests concelebrated the Mass.

“They had a singer who would give Josh Groban a run for his money,” Stoeffler stated.

“Their pianist was awesome,” Steger added.

“There was an 80-year-old priest who whipped out his smart phone and started taking pictures. They were all so impressed by everyone in their church,” Rittrig commented.

After church, the group ate at “the most amazing food court, with food like you see on TV,” according to Hendrickson, and purchased souvenirs while awaiting the Papal Mass, which was the closing event for the World Meeting of Families 2015. Millions of people, speaking different languages, engaged in the outdoor Mass.

Stoeffler said it was a wondrous ceremony. “Everyone was talking but when he held the bread up, there was complete silence,” she said.

After the Papal Mass, the journey back to southwest Wisconsin began, again by bus. The gang returned to Prairie du Chien around 3:30 p.m., Monday, Sept. 28.

Reflecting on the trip, Steger said it was “very moving.”

“It was an experience that will never happen again. I just wish everyone could’ve experienced it,” Hendrickson stated.

“Our sole purpose was to see the pope. But the pope didn’t bring us together, our love for Jesus did,” Stoeffler said, adding that, while seeing Pope Francis was unforgettable, there were many other positive memories that came out of the journey. “Everywhere the kids went, they were so respectful and complimentary. The bus ride home was pretty special too. Everyone shared their perspective of what they learned.”

The cost to make the pilgrimage to Philadelphia was $500 per person. Thanks to many donations from within the parish family, the 15 Prairie du Chien students were sponsored. To give back to those donors, the kids will host a dinner on Nov. 4, where they will meet their “prayer partners” and thank them for their generosity.

“It was a four-day whirlwind but we are very blessed,” Stoeffler said. “We’re very thankful to Father Weighner, the parishioners and the sponsors for their prayers as well.

“I just can’t say enough about the kids though. All of them signed up before they even knew it was at the same time as Homecoming, and not one of them canceled.”

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